Spreading Bike Joy on the Golden Gate Greenway

Last month, the SF Bicycle Coalition kicked off the holiday season in partnership with St. Anthony’s for their annual Giving Thanks on the Golden Gate event. We raffled off 40+ bikes and hosted free bicycle education classes and mechanic services on the Golden Gate Greenway in the Tenderloin. 

This past year, our Bike It Forward program has hosted four free bicycle repair pop ups to the Greenway to get people back on their bikes who otherwise would not have been able to afford a proper tune up. Activations like this, plus our programming at Giving Thanks on the Golden Gate, would not have been possible without the Greenway. We’re excited to bring even more programming to the Tenderloin in the future. 

The Golden Gate Greenway is the block of Golden Gate Avenue between Leavenworth Street and Jones Street that is closed to vehicular traffic everyday from six in the morning to six in the afternoon. Created during the pandemic, the Greenway is used by organizations on the 100 block of Golden Gate Ave to provide important direct services and resources to those most impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. In the densest neighborhood in the city, the Greenway provides public space for residents who don’t have many other options. 

“The street closure has also helped us to do some extraordinary things during an extraordinary year: things like COVID-19 pop-up testing; outdoor voter registration; distributing essential supplies like hand sanitizer and face coverings; drumming circles; a street mural; and hosting Play Streets events for children.” – The Golden Gate Greenway coalition, 2021

In 2020, we spoke vocally about the need to bring programs like Slow Streets and Car-Free spaces to neighborhoods like the Tenderloin. We know most of the streets in the Tenderloin and in equity-priority communities fall on the City’s High-Injury Network and that these communities would benefit the most from programs like Slow Streets and car-free spaces. 

The Golden Gate Greenway is a vibrant community gem and resource to the Tenderloin neighborhood. Every year, the Greenway has to reapply for permits to keep the partial road closure and we need your help to turn this into a permanent space forever. By supporting the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition Education Fund with a tax-deductible donation this December, you can help support these crucial partnerships and programs in the new year.

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